Quad Cities River Bandits Notebook: Week 18

Jon Popham

08/09/2011

The St. Louis Cardinals Midwest League affiliate went 4-2 this week and remains in first place. Leadoff man and second baseman Kolten Wong is batting .370 in August.

It has been another week of road games for the River Bandits. This period started last Tuesday with a four-game commuter series with the Cedar Rapids Kernels and continued with a series in Beloit. Although the team has been playing well, there has not been anything very spectacular during this week.

With the exception of rotating a few more players on and off the seven-day DL, there were no roster changes. Many fans are hopeful that the Cardinals are going to leave this team intact for the drive to the playoffs which will be in full swing in just a month. Seth Blair and Victor Sanchez were given a week off.

As was mentioned on The Cardinals Nation's forum this week, Hector Corpas has struggled all year. He has pitched 31 2/3 innings and his ERA is 7.96. He was a very promising pitcher last year but it seems that it is time for the Cardinals to re-evaluate his value to the club.

Angel DeJesus is also keeping his ERA over six. The Cards released others earlier this year with better stats. I said it before and I'll say it again - if they are going to make changes to the team before the playoffs, they should start in the bullpen.

Here is how the week looked from here:

Tuesday, August 2: Quad Cities 3, Cedar Rapids 2

In a 12-hit romp, the Bandits didn't score often but in the end they got the win. Kolten Wong and Colin Walsh were the offensive stars with three hits each. Ryan Copeland had a strong outing with six K's over seven innings. He allowed seven hits but only one run.

Mike O'Neill took top honors at the plate again as he went 3-for-5 as the DH. Oscar Taveras made his return to the lineup with a 1-for-3 outing. Both teams had eleven hits but on this night, the Kernels prevailed. Trevor Rosenthal allowed three runs and struck out five in his five innings. Aidan Lucas took the blown save and the loss as he allowed three hits and two runs on 1.1 innings.

Friday, August 5: Quad Cities 3, Cedar Rapids 2

Zack Russell took charge and directed the Bandits to the win. He pitched 6.2 solid innings striking out four and allowing only six hits. Angel DeJesus finished the game with one of his better outings on the summer with 2.1 innings without allowing a run. Taveras and Michael Swinson each had two hits and Colin Walsh added a homer as the Bandits took the series.

Saturday, August 6: Quad Cities 6, Beloit 3

The Bandits left behind the daily commute for a stay in Beloit and started the trip with a win. The team took advantage early as the first three batters scored in the top of the first. Wong had a single, Gil doubled, and then Taveras homered to take a lot of pressure off starter Boone Whiting. Wong, Gil, Taveras, and Nick Longmire each had multiple hits. Whiting continues to impress with his poise and control. He maintains an ERA below 2.00 and should be playing at least at Palm Beach next year.

Sunday, August 7: Quad Cities 2, Beloit 8

A lack of offensive support cost Anthony Ferrara his sixth loss of the year as he gave up four runs on nine hits in six innings. Hector Corpas came in for one inning and yielded the other four Snappers runs. Justin Edwards had a perfect ninth inning but it was too little too late for the Bandits. Wong was the only one to get more than one hit on a lackluster team outing.

Monday, August 8: Rained out

Monday's game was rained out and will be made up as part of a double header Tuesday night before the Bandits come home for a few games against Burlington and then a televised series in Wisconsin. If you are in central Illinois, the team will be closing the season in Peoria over the Labor Day weekend. I'm sure they would appreciate some support there if you can get to the games.